Perennials and annuals aren’t the only plants that provide color in the garden. These flowering shrubs and flowering bushes will add magnificent scents and colors to your yard.

Weigela

For a pretty shrub with interest from early spring through fall, plant weigela in your borders and flower beds. For a compact shrub with bold pink flowers and burgundy fall foliage, try Fine Wine.

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French Lilac

Syringa vulgaris • Zones 3 to 8

Blooming lilacs are among the most anticipated sights and scents of spring. A deciduous shrub growing up to 22 feet tall and wide, it’s at its best in small groupings or as a specimen plant.

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Viburnum

Viburnum spp. • Zones 2 to 9
Among the most popular of ornamental flowering

shrubs and small trees, viburnum is sought after for three reasons: it’s beautiful, it’s versatile and it’s easy to grow. What’s more, there are three prime features that contribute to the viburnum’s year-round beauty: the flowers, the leaves and the colorful fruits it produces.

Bailey Nurseries

Forsythia

Forsythia • Zones 3 to 9

When this shrub blooms, you’ll be certain that warmer weather is on the way. Forsythia is one of the first plants to flower in spring, a time when its bell-shaped golden blossoms are a most welcome sight.

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Rhododendron

Rhododendron spp. • Zones 4 to 9

Its showy blooms—available in a wide spectrum of colors—and its preference for partial shade have made this flowering shrub one of the most popular in the country. A natural fit in many settings, the rhododendron looks great in woodland gardens or as a single bush in smaller urban landscapes.

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Rose of Sharon

Hibiscus syriacus • Zones 5 to 9

It may be a late bloomer but, as many gardeners know, rose of Sharon is well worth the wait. A member of the hibiscus family, this deciduous shrub bears beautiful trumpet-shaped flowers that bloom from late summer through mid-autumn. Rose of Sharon plants reach 10 feet high and thrive in moist, well-draining soil.

Bailey Nurseries

Nanking Cherry

Prunus tomentosa • Zones 2 to 7

Hardy and fast-growing, the Nanking cherry produces fragrant white flowers in spring. A larger shrub or small ornamental tree, it grows 6 to 10 feet tall and wide. After the spring bloom, you’ll notice small fruits, a favorite of many songbirds. Use Nanking cherry in the landscape for a hedge, border or specimen planting.

Proven Winners

Hydrangea

Hydrangea spp. • Zones 4 to 10

The sight of one of these beauties is sure to conjure up memories of Grandma’s garden. The showy shrub has long been a favorite of gardeners looking for an easy-care plant that flowers even in partial shade. Bigleaf hydrangeas (Hydrangea macrophylla) are perfect for mild climates but usually won’t flower in regions with cold winters. In these areas, try cultivars of sevenbark hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens), which produce huge spheres of densely packed white blooms.

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Camellia

Camellia spp. • Zones 6 to 11

When most garden plants are settling in for a well-earned rest, camellia is just warming up. In fall, this evergreen shows off pink, white, yellow, orange and red blooms that last into winter and even early spring. With varieties ranging from 3 to 20 feet high, camellia does best in a partly shady spot that’s protected from hot, dry air and cold, strong winds.

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Daphne

Daphne spp. • Zones 4 to 10

Here’s a flowering shrub that almost smells better than it looks—almost. Daphne is loved for the intoxicating scent of its delicate white, pink and purple blooms. Its compact habit and myriad varieties make it versatile, so try it as a ground cover, specimen or foundation planting.

Many of our favorite flowering shrubs, too. Weigela shrubs are so underused in home landscapes, especially variegated weigela which is quite striking even after the blooms end.
So glad to see viburnum on your list. Viburnums are such reliable bloomers and they don’t often make top flowering shrub lists.

I have one of these in my yard that’s been there for many years. My house was built in 1942. It has gotten out of control and I need know how to prune it. Will it grow back if I cut it to the ground after it blooms?

We have a bush in our yard (we called it a burning bush) It’s leaves turn bright Red in the fall. What is it? The center of it did not flower this spring, what might be the cause of this?
We have another one 20′ from this one and it is fine.